U.S. Senate Democrats again block bill derailing Obama on immigration

WASHINGTON, Feb 4 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Democrats held
firm on Wednesday and for the second time this week blocked a
Republican proposal to cut off funding for President Barack
Obama's immigration reform policies.

The legislation, which also funds the Department of Homeland
Security, failed to get the 60 votes needed to advance in the
Senate, continuing a political battle as the clock ticks toward
the Feb. 27 expiration of funding for the homeland security
agency.

Senate Republicans say they intend to make another attempt
to advance the legislation on Thursday, partly to call public
attention to Democratic moves to block the measure, which has
already passed the House of Representatives. Both chambers have
Republican majorities.

DHS secures U.S. airports and borders and spearheads
domestic counter-terrorism efforts. It also contains the U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services, a small agency that is
expected to process the millions of undocumented immigrants who
may apply for legal protection under Obama's November 2014
executive order.

Republicans charge Obama overreached with the 2014 executive
order, which shields from deportation the undocumented parents
of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents, as well as a
2012 order that helped undocumented child immigrants, widely
known as the "Dreamers" program.

Wednesday's vote, in which 53 Republicans voted to advance
the bill to debate and 47 Democrats voted no, came after one
Republican senator, Susan Collins, proposed removing part of the
House-passed bill that would drain the Dreamers program of
funds.

"I just think it's not right to send them back to their home
countries when many of them have known no other home than
America, and they didn't make the decision to come here, their
parents brought them here," Collins told reporters.

But her amendment did not entice any Democrats to vote to
allow debate and amendments on the legislation. Democrats,
including Obama, are pushing for a bill to fund DHS without any
conditions attached.

Earlier Tuesday, a Senate committee was told a government
agency could struggle to process millions of undocumented
immigrants who may apply for legal protection under Obama's 2014
executive order.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services could be
overwhelmed by a surge of applicants later this year even if it
hires an additional 1,000 workers as planned, said Luke
Bellocchi, a former deputy ombudsman to the agency.

Bellocchi said 4.5 million additional applications are
expected in the coming months.
(Additional reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Bill Trott
and Leslie Adler)